Home hazards present many dangers that people commonly ignore. This is presumably why falls are prominent home injuries. Whether they are caused by cracks in sidewalks, unsteady bookcases or poorly lit areas, falls can cause serious, long-term injuries. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), falls account for more than nine million emergency room visits across the United States each year. The Home Safety Council reports that falls are the leading cause fatal home injuries, and they represent nearly half of non-fatal injuries.
Falls May Be Preventable
However, experts believe that many falls are preventable. Dr. Sandra Schneider, president of the American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP) says that it is critical to know your everyday environment and minimize risks. ACEP suggests that the following changes could reduce the risk of future falls:
- Having well lit staircases and hallway. Nightlights may help.
- Eliminating clutter in your home and clearing stairs and walkways.
- Repairing or replacing loose stairway carpeting or floorboards.
- The elderly and the disabled should have handgrips in showers and bathrooms. Tubs and showers should also have non-slip surfaces.
- In homes with young children, use locking gates near stairs.
For those who have been injured in a fall, Schneider recommends that identifying the cause and making appropriate changes to prevent future falls are as just as important as treating the injuries themselves. Preventing future injuries can improve quality of life and longevity.
Legal Liability for Slip-and-Falls
Preventing falls also has legal significance. Homeowners have a duty to keep their homes free of hazards, and to advise visitors of unseen dangers that could cause injuries. Homeowners who ignore this duty or fail to take reasonable steps to keep their home safe could be held liable for negligence. For example, if a guest falls and is injured after falling out of a broken chair (that the homeowner knew about) the homeowner could be held legally responsible for the guests' injuries. Generally, homeowners carry insurance on their home or condo with insurance coverage for liability in the event of a negligence act such as causing a fall to a non-resident visiting the home or property. Such limits are usually in the range of $100,000 to $300,000. A prime example of such a case the firm handled is when a woman was walking her dog at night and tripped over black skateboards left on the sidewalk in front of the house. Our client could not see the skateboards as the streetlight was broken and the house was no illuminated well. As a result of the negligence of the child leaving the skateboard out on the sidewalk and the parents for not clearing the sidewalk, our client was injured suffering a broken wrist and other injuries. Clearly, it was foreseeable that people would walk at night, and due to the darkness of the area, someone could easily trip over the boards and sustain injury.
Settlement was reached with both the homeowner's association for negligently allowing a broken neighborhood street light to remain in disrepair and their negligence in failing to properly inspect, and against the homeowners through their homeowner's insurance carrier. Both parties settled and our client received fair compensation for her injuries and pain and suffering.
If you or a loved one has suffered a fall, an experienced personal injury attorney can advise you of your rights and options. Sometimes, as this example provides, those who are at fault are not readily apparent, and using knowledgeable attorneys like Feldman, Fox & Morgado can be the difference in whether you obtain compensation for your injuries.
